His surname may sound like that of former Magpies hero Keith Gillespie, but Macaulay Gillesphey is hoping to carve out a reputation of his own at Newcastle United over the next few years.

A boyhood fan of the club, Macaulay knows all about his near-namesake but his favourite players were Alan Shearer and Steven Taylor - a player who he tries to model his game on when he plays at centre-back.

Also capable of slotting in at full-back, he arrived at Little Benton in the summer of 2011 after being spotted playing for Cramlington Juniors and signed a scholarship a year later.

Broke into the under-21 set-up towards the end of 2012/13 and continued to progress last term.